We recently attended an ATO forum where a question about superannuation clearing houses was asked. We had always thought the same rules applied to the one run by the government as did to the ones run by banks etc. But no, if you use the Small Business Superannuation Clearing House you can crib and extra day or two to pay your SGC contributions.
Question:
What are the guidelines for superannuation clearing houses to transfer funds to superannuation funds? How many days is it supposed to take? Some clients are reporting that a well-known clearing house is taking a long time to transfer payments.
Response:
We suggest that employers check the fine print with the superannuation clearing house when registering, as all superannuation clearing houses must advertise how long they take to allocate the money to the fund. If an employer is unhappy with the lag between payment and allocation, they have the option of moving to another superannuation clearing house that may better meet their requirements.
For example, the ATO Small Business Superannuation Clearing House allocates the money the day after it is received, although the employer meets their Superannuation Guarantee obligation the day they pay the clearing house, not the day the fund receives it (which is different to commercial clearing houses).